Summary

Experienced Chemical Engineer with a proven track record for successfully managing teams in the scaling up and commercializing of new technologies.  

Projects include:

• GreatPoint Energy- Catalytic coal gasification
• Syntroleum- Gas to Liquid
• Biodiesel of TN: Used oil to diesel
• Air Products ITM
• Sasol Fischer Tropsch Coal to Liquids

Expertise

Design, startup, troubleshoot and operate first of its kind technology.

Risk Management

• Syngas generation
• Syngas utilization
• Fluidization systems- Gas-solids
• Slurry systems: Gas-Liquid-solids
• Catalyst regeneration
• Catalytic Coal Gasification
• Fischer-Tropsch
• Solid separation: Filtration-Cyclones

Theory vs. Practice

The doctoral studies trained me to go beyond the symptoms to the actual theoretical causes of any problem. The operations experience guided me to apply common sense and practical solutions.

Not all problems are solve by research (R&D) many of them require the synergy of other technologies and others have very simple solutions that involve a very small capital investment.

The key is maintaining a healthy benefit/cost ratio.

Applied Research

During my career all the research that I have done has been in view of its industrial application.

• Sasol- Scaleup of FT slurry reactors to the 1st commercial reactor at Sasol I- Sasolburg South Africa: 80 bpd to 5,000 bpd.
• Sasol- Scaleup of SAS Rx. From 2500 bpd to 20 kbpd (later in Secunda- South Africa).
• Ph.D. Thesis: Scaleup of slurry reactors: Sponsored by Sasol, evaluated by Dupont and Air Products and Chemicals
• Air Products- Filtration- Amine business in KS
• Syntroleum- From NG to Diesel/Naphtha
• GreatPoint Energy- Coal to Methane